Meanwhile, Sen. Richard Gordon, who has been distancing himself from the administration, accused President Arroyo of "trying to pass on the problem to the legislature."

"There are many things that wages do, apart from enriching those with wages," he said. "It also affects those without work."

The Philippines should follow the example of China, South Korea and Japan which require low salaries until they are able to determine higher value for wages.

"Sa akin (For me), it is important that the wage increases be decided by wage boards," he said.

"They are closer on the ground... while legislature can do that, cast wages in stone... di mo alam kung magiging elastic na naman... baka masyadong mataas na di na pumasok ang negosyo (You don't know if it will become elastic again...it might be too high that business would not come in)," Gordon said.

Gordon also advised Mrs. Arroyo against pushing for a legislated wage hike.

"The President must not pass on to the legislature what is essentially an executive function," he said.

"It should really be the executive that should make decisions... whether it would be good for the wage earner."